KALAMAZOO, MI – They danced together. They stretched together. They dyed their hair and adorned themselves with custom headbands and flair together.

Then they ran together, and, most importantly, finished together. A 5K was completed, but there were no stop watches or standings.

Flanked by friends, family and teammates either on the course or in the crowd, everyone was a winner as they hit the finish line at the Greater Kalamazoo Girls On The Run 5K Thursday evening, whether they ran, walked or crawled.

"I just loved all the people I met and all the new friends I've made. The coaches are just so helpful to you and they just push you to keep running," said Lena Thompson, a fifth-grader at Mattawan's Later Elementary.

"I could never be where I am without Girls On The Run."

More than 2,000 third, fourth and fifth-grade girls along with an estimated 1,200-plus community members completed the 5K as the culmination of the 10-week Girls On The Run program that strives to instill lessons about self-confidence, self-respect and trustworthiness to girls through a mix of running and group exercises. Sixty-one schools were represented with various numbers of teams consisting of 10-15 girls. About 400 volunteers were on hand, excluding team coaches, distributing water, encouraging and directing traffic to help the event run smoothly.

There are more than 230 Girls On The Run programs across the country, and the Greater Kalamazoo branch is one of the 10 largest, director Melisa Ellis Beeson said.

"It talks about being yourself and just accepting who you are," said Lucy Wallis, a fifth-grader at Winchell Elementary, said of Girls On The Run. "It's really fun because you get to be active and you get to work out while learning really, like, values and stuff about yourself."

A DJ blasting tunes and an upbeat, dynamic group stretch session built the energy and excitement for the 3.1-mile jaunt through the downtown Kalamazoo streets. The Loy Norrix High School drum line played as the runners poured out of Western Michigan University's Waldo Stadium to the starting line on the corner of Oakland Drive and Lovell Street. The streets were lined with encouraging spectators holding signs, cheering and using noise-makers.

There were parents who casually run in their spare time pacing themselves alongside their daughters, and many more that took on the challenge as a bonding experience despite limited running experience.

Glenn and Nina Boehm were just hoping they could keep up with their daughter Amaya, a fifth-grader at King-Westwood Elementary.

"We went for a practice run over the weekend and she was beating us, so we don't want to slow her down," Glenn Boehm said. "We're here to show support."

"I just hope I make it across the finish line," Nina Boehm added. "If I do, it's going to feel good."

More so than the physical accomplishment, Nina Boehm was hopeful that the lessons and values taught in Girls On The Run would stick with her daughter as she matures and enters middle school next year.

"I like the fact that it helps them with self-esteem, just kind of gives them motivation, talks to them about bullying," Glenn Boehm said. "But not only do they talk about it there, but it gives us something to talk about once we pick her up, about what she learned."

Jason Julien, parent of a fourth-grader at Heritage Christian Academy, was admittedly a bit nervous before the run got underway as another first-time 5K runner. The reward of taking on the challenge alongside his daughter outweighed the nerves, though.

"She hasn't been in so many sports before this, so it's pretty cool to see her excited about something," Julien said.

After receiving their medals at the finish line, the participants filtered back down into Waldo Stadium to celebrate with family and teammates. Hundreds of participants stuck around upon completion and cheered on friends and teammates as they reached the finish.

"They set this goal back in March that 'I'm gonna run a 5K on May 22nd,'" Ellis Beeson said. "... I'm gonna run, walk, skip, jump, hop – however I'm going to have to get there, but I'm going to get across the finish line."